Elizabeth Von Arnim

Elizabeth von Arnim, born Mary Annette Beauchamp, was a British novelist. By marriage she became the Gräfin (Countess) von Arnim, and by a second marriage Countess Russell. Although known in her early life as May, "after the publication of her first book, she was known to her readers, eventually to her friends, and finally even to her family as Elizabeth." and she is now invariably referred to as Elizabeth von Arnim.

She was born in New Zealand where her family, then resident in Sydney, Australia, had cousins and a holiday home. When she was three years old the family returned to England where she was raised.

Elizabeth von Arnim spent her old age in London, Switzerland, and on the French Riviera. When World War II broke out she permanently took up residence in the United States, where she died in 1941, aged 74.